The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1887-07-27
THE SUNDAY SCHOOL.
Notes on the Lesson for July 81
THE Temptation Of
Jesus"

-, Immediately after the baptism PIace-In
the wilderness OF Judea, between Jerusalem
aud Judea probably on one OF the noun
nins. See under special mention.
SPECIAL MENTION.
% Fact Of the temptation. It was a real
temptation, AS real as ours. That Cbrists IN
noccnce was there secured by even more than
divine help, by the possession Of a divine ma
ture, Is mere inference OF the reason, and
involves sbelIef in the simple record of the
gospel Why was he tempted by sagacious
tempter If he could not by any possibility be
led into evlly And If he himself knew that
he could not sin, what could the transaction
have been 10 him but a mere Formally? Or
how IL he an example TO US, If his temptation
ID an unrealityy Mo- They dishonor Christs
work who think thus. When he took on himself
the form OF a servant he became by his own
VIII subject to every thing which
can affect human nature. (Woosey)
Let us beware of contradictng the
express teachings of the Scriptures, and, az
OF Christ himself, by suppOstion that he
was not liable to real temptation. He was Ii
able TO temptation all the sorer because il
came like agony to nature infinitely strong
yet infinitely pure. In proportion as any one
has strlyen ali his life TO be, like his great
Ensample, holy, harmless, undefled, separate
from sinners, III that proportion will ne re-
alize the intensity of the struggle, the anguish
OF the antipathy which pervades a nobler ma
ture, when by suggestions from within or
from without, II has been dragged into even
apparent proximity + tina possibilities of
evil (farrar)
O. Manner Of the temptation. Either %
il Is literal narrative-that Satan really ap-
peared III tangible form To Jesus, and pro-
posed to him 10 convert the stones into bread,
carried Him bodily 20 the pinnacle of the tenn
pie, and showed Him from some high emf
hence view which at least suggested all the
kingdoms Of the world This Is a common
view among evangelical interpreters; to il
there are serious objections, objections which
seem TO me to be conclusive. Or C9 it de-
scribes in dramatic language a real but in
ternal experience-that Satan was really
present, whispering the suggestions of evil
10 the soul OF Jesus, he still does
to us, but unrecognized until the last, the
subtlest and worst Of the three temptations;
that the narrative describes succession OF
pictures which passed before Christ's imag-
nation, by which Satan endeavored 10 seduce
him; that IT was III imagination that Jesus
was carried to the pinnacle of the temple,
and in Imagination was shown the kingdoms
OF the world, and that he invited TO
gain control of them, not by a literal wor-
shipping of the bodily fiend, but by yielding to
the arts of the Evil One, and serving him as
the previous conquerors of the world, Cyrus
and Alexander for example, had done.
Difficulties, however, are inherent in any con-
cepuon Of Christs temptation here and in any
attempt to understand his experience of con-
fict elsewhere recorded. We can only rever-
entity accept the declaration that he was
tempted in all points like as we are, yet with
out sin. (Abbott) How far these tempta-
| tons were subjective, aud how far objectlve;
| whether Satan appeared vlslbiy, and if so,
| whether he appeared as an angel of light,
| or IN his true hideousness; these are ques-
| tions which we have no space TO discuss here,
| nor Is IL best To be curious at this point That
| Satan was there IN person is clearly stated,
| whether he made himself visible or not; and
| whether he presented objective temptations, or
! stirred up the mind of Jesus to see these things
in vision Is practically, OF no importance
SINCE in either case, the power of the tempta-
| ton would be the same. STANDARD Ecclesi-
| astcal Commentary
(3) The essence or giSt of the temptation.
| In this threefold temptation there is notice.
able a regular progression. The first APP
peaed 10 the body; the second TO love of
admiration; the third to love of power The
first TO mere bodily appetite the second
| to a more honorable desire of fame, founded
on human sympathy; the third to a noble
ambition which Satan tried to pervert In
the first Satan tried TO mislead by hiding the
sin; in the second, by sanctioning the sin, be-
cause of the greater good to be accomplished
| by It; in the third, TO compensate for the sin
| by a promised reward (Abbott) The true
meaning of it lies in this, that the Savior in
that conflict was steeing his soul against the
threefold form in which temptation presented
itself to him in after life, to mar or neutralize
his ministry. l. To convert the hard, stony
life of duty into the comfort and enjoyment
! of this life; 70 barter, like Esau life for pot
tage; TO use divine powers in him only to pro-
cure bread of earth. 2. To distrust God,
and try impatiently some wild, sud
den plan, instead of his meek
and SLOW appointed ways-to cast
himself from the temple as we dash ourselves
| against our destiny. 3. To do homage to the
| majesty of wrong; to worship evil for the sake
| of success; making the world his own by force
or by crooked policy, instead of suffering. (F
| w. Robertson) The whole temptation presents
a contrast between the founding of Gods king
dom as pure, spiritual, and tried by many
forms of sef-denial in It's slow development,
| and the sudden establishment OF that kingdom
as visible and earthly This contrast forms
the central point of the whole, and the free and
conscious decision manifested in these threa
temptations, fully contrasting the true and
false Messiahshp was made before His public
ministry which itself was but con-
tinuatlon of the strife and the triumph.
| (Neander) His first proposal was TO confer
on Jesus the Office of magician prophet; his
second to make Him the chief and prince of a
great hierarchy; his third to invest Him with
the Office of demoniacal and all powerful
monarch of the world Lange.) All the
ordinary temptations of life may be grouped
in three classes: "the lusts of the flesh the
lust Of the eyes, and the pride of life." q
| John ii. 49, The Saviors three temptations
correspond to these They were chosen be-
cause Of their strong grasp upon human
nature. In passing through them, Jesus
"was tempted in all points as we are" IL was
TO subvert His Msssianic integrity-to ply
ments that would most directly influence Him
to gain Messianlc ends by other than Mes
sianic means-that Satan directed all his acts
Stand Eccl Comm
~ Purpose ofthe temptation. First. as we
| Judge, to give our Lord taste of what lay
before him in the work he had undertaken;
next TO make trial of the glorious furniture
for il which he had just received; further, To
give him encouragement by the victory now
to be won, 20 go forward spelling prncipali
ties and powers. until at length he should
make show of them openly, triumphing
over them in his cross; that the tempter too
might get taste at the very outset, of the
new kind Of material in man which he would
find he had here to deal with finally, that he
might acquire experimental ability ~to
succor them that are tempted"
sEED-TRUTHs AND GERM THOUGHTS.
/. The mere fact OF temptation is no sin or
disgrace. Even Christ WAS tempted.
3 The means Christ used TO ward off
temptation is free to us all, even the word OF
| God
3 How carefully and constantly we should
study the word-drilling ourselves, as il
were, to skillful use of this sword of the
| Spirit
Subject OF Lesson for Aug. Z, 'Jesus in Gal
| ilee Matt iv. 1925